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"My heart is pounding," said Brenda Bauer of Seattle, who's been with her partner, Celia Bauer, for 18 years. "I'm thrilled by the prospect that our relationship might be recognized."

She said their 11-year-old daughter has never understood why they can't be treated like any other family.

The Rev. Joseph Fuiten of Cedar Park Assembly in Bothell, an outspoken opponent of same-sex marriage and a state law banning discrimination against gays, said he was also "on pins and needles."

"There's a lot at stake, obviously," Fuiten said. "If we have a judiciary that isn't absolutely radicalized, we have a chance to win it."

In Washington, a ruling that lets gay couples marry could be much more significant than even the May 2004 court decision that made Massachusetts the first state to legalize gay marriage.

Unlike Massachusetts, Washington has no laws that would keep same-sex couples around the country from coming here to tie the knot.

"It does pave the way for nationalizing the issue," said attorney Steve O'Ban, who represents religious leaders and two state lawmakers against same-sex marriage.

Though the court typically hands down its decisions on Thursdays, Chief Justice Gerry Alexander said Tuesday that the ruling would be issued today simply because it was ready to go.

"We've been aware from the start that there has been intense public interest in this issue," Alexander said.

As of late Tuesday, news conferences were planned across the state, and some lawmakers and activists were already devising responses to whatever the court decides.

Sen. Dan Swecker, R- Rochester, said any ruling other than upholding the existing definition of marriage would likely trigger a call from Republicans for a special legislative session.

Fuiten said he and others would respond to a decision legalizing gay marriage by launching efforts "to amend the constitution to put it out of the reach of the courts."

Rep. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, led the fight to pass gay rights legislation this year, and he's vowed to make marriage equality his new priority.

"If the court says that it's up to the Legislature, I'll introduce a marriage bill," Murray said. "If the court says it's legal, we will fight a constitutional amendment."

Gov. Christine Gregoire would not comment on what she would or would not do until the court releases its decision, a spokesman said.

Justices heard the case on March 8, 2005, when attorneys made constitutional arguments inside the Temple of Justice as thousands of people rallied outside.

Attorneys for the state and King County -- as well as a group of state lawmakers and religious leaders opposing same-sex marriage -- argued that the question of who can marry should be left to the Legislature.

They said lawmakers had a rational reason for limiting marriage to people of the opposite sex: Only those couples are biologically capable of having children, and keeping them together is generally best for those children.

But attorneys for the same-sex couples -- whose case was supported by the American Civil Liberties Union, Northwest Women's Law Center and Lambda Legal -- say the law discriminates against loving couples.

They argued that keeping same-sex couples from marrying makes it more difficult for them to raise their children, though it still accomplishes nothing for the kids who are being raised by a mother and a father.

The case was an appeal from two lawsuits, one in King County and one in Thurston County, filed by 19 same-sex couples who sued for the right to wed.

Justices must decide the fate of state's 1998 Defense of Marriage Act. The law, passed by an overwhelming majority of lawmakers over Gov. Gary Locke's veto, defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

Superior Court judges in both counties struck down the law banning same-sex marriage as unconstitutional in 2004.

More than 40 states have a law defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman, and about 20 have written that definition into their constitution.

Earlier this month, New York's highest court ruled that preventing gay couples from marrying did not violate the state constitution -- a blow to same-sex couples who had high hopes that the case would go their way.

In Washington, Jeff Kemp, a former Seattle Seahawks player who's active in groups that promote families with one mother and one father, said society has ignored the importance of marriage for far too long.

Kemp said he "would be concerned if the decision were to turn over the male-female union meaning of marriage."

But Johanna Bender, who has been with her partner, Sherri Kokx, for almost 10 years, said she is hopeful that the court will see "the drastic importance of treating our family with equality and dignity under the law."

"On a personal level, it's been difficult," Bender said. "She's the person I want to marry -- and I can't."